Dreaming is Not Enough
by caper
Summary: LIASON -- This is a spin on past events. Ric is in town, but went down between him and Sonny did not happen. Ric and Elizabeth are not married and neither are Courtney and Jason.
1. A Bell Rings

Disclaimer: The characters within the story are the property of ABC. I am not affiliated with ABC or the productions of General Hospital.  
  
Chapter One: A Bell Rings  
  
It had been weeks since Elizabeth had last seen Jason. She knew he was with Courtney now. Courtney had moved into the penthouse with Jason. She knew Courtney had changed her address at work, the same address she had held for a time. It seemed so long ago that her and Zander once lived in the penthouse. Of course, at the time it was for her protection. She had wished it would have been for longer, she dreamed it would have been long- term, but when she found out Jason had lied to her about Sonny's death, she had to leave. It just didn't' feel like somewhere she wanted to stay. Lucky had lied to her about loving her, about caring for Sarah and she was just tired of being lied too. She had waited and worried for Jason to come home to that penthouse and when he finally did it, it was all a lie. Why did people feel the need to lie to her? She always trusted Jason to tell the truth, in fact she depended on it, but that was all a lie too.  
  
CRASH - dropping a tray of dishes.  
  
God, why am I so careless sometimes, she thought. Jason was still on her mind. If she was really honest with herself she missed him all the time. But things were different now. He was with Courtney and she was spending time with Ric. She didn't regret walking out on Jason that night. It was a matter of principle; it was a matter of respect for herself. The one thing she did regret was how things were with her and Jason now. She missed talking to him, but that was her past and she had to start thinking about her future.  
As she began to clean her mess, she heard the bell ring above the door. It was strange, even after all this time apart from Jason, she always whispered a silent "please" in the hopes of Jason appearing. Even though Courtney worked at Kelly's, Jason had not been in to see her, well not when she was working anyway. She wondered whether that had something to do with her, but the pessimist part of her said, no.  
When she finally lifted her head to inspect the new arrival, she saw a smiling face looking down at her. "Well that's some mess you made?" Ric was nice, she liked him. He treated her like an adult, something many people forget about her.  
  
"Oh! Hey Ric. I was just.I got distracted and dropped the tray." She stumbled with the broken plates cutting her hand.  
  
"Hey, hey, what's wrong? Elizabeth are you okay?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine, just having a bad day. It's been busy in here all morning and I'm just tired, but thanks for asking." She knew she was lying. Well, not lying exactly, but she was not telling the whole truth. It was busy in Kelly's all morning, but her carelessness was part distraction and that distraction was all Jason. She couldn't tell that to Ric though. "Oh God, you cut yourself?" he said sounding very concerned.  
  
"No, no.don't worry about me, it's nothing" she said pulling her hand away to examine it better.  
  
"Nothing.your bleeding let me see."  
  
She passed over her and hand and he examined it as thought he had an M.D. after his name. After a few minutes of care, he told her she wouldn't need stitches.  
  
"Great because it is crazy in here and I can't leave."  
  
Ric took her hand and started bandaging the cut. As he, did he began a lecture on being more alert, her thoughts were somewhere else, when she had bandaged someone.  
  
Flashback: Kelly's  
  
"Hey. You made it just under the wire. Can I get you something"  
  
"Coffee."  
  
"Ok."  
  
"I guess. Black."  
  
"I think I know how you take your coffee by now."  
  
"Yeah, you do."  
  
"Though, I don't understand how you can drink it on such a hot day."  
  
"What's one thing have to do with the other?"  
  
"Never mind. You know, maybe I'll grab a drink and join you, if you're not in a hurry, I mean."  
  
"I don't -- I don't think that's such a good idea."  
  
"I don't think anybody's going to pull out a gun and shoot us right here."  
  
[Elizabeth's tries the door] Oh, shoot, it's locked.  
  
"I'll get it."  
  
"Oh -- no, no -- that's ok, I'll do it."  
  
"You're -"  
  
"Yes. Can I have a credit card, please?"  
  
"You're going to -- you're going to pick a lock with a credit card?"  
  
"I watch "Alias." Ok."  
  
"Uh -- I'd -- I'd take it a little easier -"  
  
"It's ok."  
  
"With that. It's just that -"  
  
"I've almost got it".  
  
[Jason's credit card breaks]"Oh."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"Oh."  
  
"That worked."  
  
"I -- whoops. I'm sorry I did -- oh, I'm so sorry. Here. Don't make fun of me, ok?"  
  
"Ok."  
  
"God, not that I don't deserve it. Jeez -- can I just have your cell phone so I can call the locksmith, like I should have done in the first place?"  
  
"You know what? You're in luck, because I have experience with this kind of thing. Yeah. Give me this."  
  
"Sure. Well, by all means."  
  
[Jason wraps his hand in a towel and breaks the window, opening the door]  
  
"There you go."  
  
"So technical."  
  
"Well, I really am impressed. I mean, where did you learn such skills? Saturday morning cartoons?"  
  
"A solution doesn't have to be complicated to work."  
  
"Jason, you hurt yourself."  
  
"No, come on, it's nothing, really."  
  
"Oh. Oh, aren't you macho? I'm going to bandage it."  
  
"No, no, no -- I don't need a band-aid."  
  
"Don't argue with me."  
  
"Would it do any good?"  
  
"Exactly."  
  
"You know, on the docks the other night, after Kristina's memorial, I meant every word I said. "  
  
"Doesn't matter."  
  
"How can you say that?"  
  
"Because of how things are."  
  
"You mean whatever danger you think I'm in."  
  
"And then there's you and Zander."  
  
"He's been good to me. I care about him."  
  
"I get that. You were going to leave town with him."  
  
"You wanted me to. At least that's what you said. I was afraid of what might happen to Zander if he didn't get out of town. He -- he refused to leave without me. It's not like I sat down and thought it out and made a conscious decision. I just -- I wanted him safe."  
  
"That's what I wanted for you."  
  
"Do you know that I went to Sonny and begged him to give Zander another chance to stay in Port Charles because I didn't want to leave Port Charles? Do you want to know why?"  
  
"Oh, no -- Elizabeth -"  
  
"You don't have to answer. I know you feel the same way I do. Feeling it is why you're here right now."  
  
.....  
  
"Liz.Liz.Elizabeth.hey are you still with me."  
  
Ric was waving his hand in front of her face trying to grab her attention.  
  
"Yeah, yeah.sorry, of course I am. I am just distracted today" she said trying to sounding convincing.  
  
"Are you sure you are all right?" His voice sounded concerned and she did not particularly feel like delving into her memories with Ric.  
  
"I'm fine, sorry. It's just one of those days." She hoped that that would suffice and he would not ask any further.  
  
"Well, if you are sure you are alright...I wanted to ask you if you wanted to go to dinner tonight and perhaps to the theatre."  
  
"Oh Ric that sounds so great!" She loved going to the theatre and she felt like she needed to occupy her thoughts with things other than Jason, but her face turned blank when she realized what day it was.  
  
"I can't.today is Thursday, I have my class tonight."  
  
"Oh yeah, I forgot. How is that going anyway?" he asked sounding disappointed.  
  
"It is going great.great. I'm sorry, it's just a bad night, but what about a rain check?" She knew he was disappointed, but she wasn't ready to share her secret and she certainly knew that she had to continue concealing it from him.  
  
"Sure that sounds great, what about tomorrow night? Are you free? he asked with a hint of hopefulness.  
  
"Tomorrow night sounds fantastic. That would be wonderful; you can pick me up at 6ish, does that sound okay? she said trying to sound excited.  
  
"That sounds great, I will se you then." He leaned down to kiss her goodbye and she dodged him by turning her face and caught her cheek. He didn't seem to mind however and gave have her a quick smile before turning and leaving. Elizabeth heaved a sigh of relief after he she was certain he was gone and could not hear her.  
  
It wasn't that she didn't like Ric, she did. He was a great guy. He played the guitar and took an active interest in her art. They went to different art shows together and she enjoyed watching him play his guitar. He was good and she loved to watch him play. But, there was just something missing. She knew her heart was not ready, not yet anyway. She wasn't quit prepared to let go of Jason and what could have been. Her Thursday nights told her that. 


	2. Another Thursday Night

Disclaimer: The characters within the story are the property of ABC. I am not affiliated with ABC or the productions of General Hospital.  
  
Chapter Two: Another Thursday Night  
  
For the past two months she had been coming to Jake's every Thursday night. She would play pool for a couple of hours and then go to the docks to think. She knew that it was not healthy, it wasn't helping her get over Jason, but things had been left so badly. She had the attack of the "guilts" and wanted to somehow run into him. They had unfinished business.  
  
As she walked in, Jake waved and some of the regulars at the bar gave her a nod. She walked to the seat nearest to the juke box, her regular seat and waited as she always did. Some nights she would wait 2 or 3 hours and others just 30 minutes. Sometimes when Jake's got rowdy she just needed to get out. In all the time she had been coming to Jake's she had not once seen him. She knew she couldn't keep up her Thursday night ritual forever, but for now it was all she had.  
  
After about an hour, she got bored and went to play a game of pool. The bar was deep into the depths of the night and most to the patrons who usually played with her, had surpassed their limit of coherence. So, she played alone. It wasn't the first and it wouldn't be the last she conceited. Besides she told herself, "It would be good practice."  
  
After shooting around for a while, she put away her pool stick and went to collect her jacket from the chair. As she began to put her jacket on, she heard the door to Jake's open, feeling the breeze of the cool night air.  
  
Shivers went down her spin and she began to feel butterflies in her stomach. She knew somewhere deep down inside that it was him, she didn't need to turn around to know, she just knew.  
  
Turning around slowly, she saw him walk towards the bar. "Wow" she though, he looked amazing. She caught herself starring and turned away quickly sitting down in her chair. But she couldn't stop starring. He was by himself which relieved her. She was glad that Courtney was not with him, she wasn't sure she could take that. He looked the same. She laughed to herself.  
  
"Why wouldn't he look the same" she said to herself in a mocking tone.  
  
He had the same spiky hair and blue eyes and that leather jacket he wore like a second skin. On the outside it was all the same and it looked like it was same on the inside. That's what alerted her. She had expected to see a twinkle or spark in those eyes, but nothing. She had figured that since his divorce had been finalized to Brenda and Courtney was now a more permanent fixture in his life, he would look different somehow. But, he didn't. He didn't glow or shine, his eyes weren't dead, but she never thought they were. But, where was that look? The look people have when they are in love or lust or whatever. Jason didn't have that look. Silently she watched and felt sadness that he did not have it, but also a wave of relief that he didn't.  
  
Jason was enjoying his beer. He had been driving on his bike for hours. He had been doing that a lot since Courtney had moved in. It wasn't that he didn't care for her, he did, there was just something missing. He appreciated how she had supper waiting for him at home and how she had decorated the penthouse, although it was not his style. It was great and he was grateful, but there was just something missing. She wanted to spend the evenings watching movies or walking Rosie. Courtney was trying to domesticate him and he just didn't want to be broken. She never wanted to play pool or even go on the bike. Their worlds were so different. Jason had told her that he had business and had to go out. That wasn't a lie. He did have business, but it was finished up almost 2 hours ago and he just needed to get some space.  
  
After riding for almost 2 hours, he realized he was close to Jake's and got the urge to have a beer and maybe play a quick game of pool. "That's what he needed" he thought to himself.  
  
As he drank his beer, he could feel a pair of eyes on him. Years of working for Sonny had taught him to be alert at all times. Before turning to see who was starring at him, he checked to make sure he had easy access to his gun.  
  
As he swiveled his stool around, a strange feeling came over him. It wasn't the usual adrenaline feeling he got while working, but a feeling like anxiety and light headedness. He felt a pit in his stomach and a strange feeling of weakness. When he had finished turning around completely, he scanned the room for those eyes, the eyes that had been watching him.  
  
When he got to about mid room he stopped, "Elizabeth" he whispered to himself. It was Elizabeth who had been starring at him. She looked beautiful. He had forgotten she looked so beautiful, or rather he had chosen to forget. It had been months since he had seen her last. He stayed away from Kelly's because it was just too hard and he did not want to hurt her anymore. He knew he had lied to her and hurt her deeply, but he also had no regrets. He lied because it was his job and he was protecting Sonny. He would never regret that. He was never a man who thought about the future. He had lived his life one day at a time. That was his style. However, he had missed her. Not having her around was difficult. He had missed playing pool with her and going for rides on his bike. He had even missed her incessant babbling. He always knew he would run into her again, Port Charles was not that big, but he had tried hard not to.  
  
He knew she was doing well. He even knew about her and Ric. Ric had been working for Sonny and although Jason opposed him - Sonny thought differently. But Jason had gotten a bad feeling about him and had him followed. It was Francis who had told him about Elizabeth and Ric being together. It hadn't really bothered him, as much as surprised him. It's not that he didn't think she would find someone. She was a beautiful woman with a spirit that was determined. He always saw that as a strength in her, even though he had not acknowledged it. But even though he knew Elizabeth could take care of herself, he just didn't trust Ric. He had Francis following them and reporting back to him. No one knew except him and Francis knew. He hadn't wanted Sonny to know. He wasn't even sure why he continued to have him and more specifically "them" followed. He knew he didn't trust Ric, but he also wanted to say connected to Elizabeth somehow. Even though he hadn't admitted it to anyone, he knew he needed to know she was okay.  
  
Elizabeth saw him turn around in his stool and felt like she was going to fall out of her own chair. He didn't' smile, in fact his expression did not change at all or reveal at all what he was thinking. That worried her, but instead of returning his blank stare, she smiled at him. She hadn't realized she had done it until she could feel the sides of her mouth raised. She felt like she was grinning from ear to ear, but she couldn't stop herself. The next thing she knew, she was waving.  
  
"God, what is wrong with me. I have lost all control of my body" she said to herself as she tried to reduce her smile without success.  
  
Before she could react to her own actions, he was off his stool and on his way toward her table. This was it. The moment she had been waiting for. The past two months and her weekly Thursday visits to Jake's were all for this moment. She just hoped that she could gain a little self-control before he got there.  
  
Jason saw her smile. He was surprised to see it. He didn't think he would ever see her smile at him again. She could light up a room. She was grinning form ear to ear. It was such a great sight and he was happy to see it. What happened next, he never expected - she waved!  
  
"I can't believe she waved at me" he thought, not believing his own words.  
  
Before he knew it, he was off his stool and on his way to her table. He hadn't thought about it, but once he saw that smile and that wave, another part of his body took over and he was on his way toward her. 


End file.
